Take Me Home
by RatherBeAWriter
Summary: A black eye might get in the way of their dinner reservations, but it's not going to ruin date night. One-shot. Post Closing Time (7x14)


**A/N: I've been meaning to write this one for a while and re-watching some season 7 put the idea back in my head. This is my take on what happens when JJ goes home at the end of Closing Time. Pure fluff, without even a trace of angst to give me credibility. I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. If I did, we'd see a whole lot more of Will!**

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"Hey, I'm home!" she called, grateful that he seemed to be upstairs. That would give him time to realise she was okay before he saw the black eye.

She hadn't told him. In hindsight, a phone call might have been a good idea. But then again, it might just have given him more time to stew in his worry. This way was better. Maybe.

As he appeared at the top of the stairs, fastening the cuffs on his dress shirt, she bit her lip in an apprehensive smile. Hopefully, he wouldn't be too disappointed over the cancellation of their dinner plans. She sighed a little. If nothing else, a phone call would have avoided the situation where he was already half dressed to go out.

"If we hurry up we might even make it before closin' time," he grinned, evidently still oblivious to her appearance, as he quickly made his way towards her. "I can call ahead and push back the reserv..." He paused, trailing off mid-word as his gaze zoned in on her most prominent bruise. "...vation," he completed, quietly.

"Would you hate me if we ordered in?" she grimaced, trying to make a joke of the situation, as she had with Morgan. She was fine. No real harm done; no need to make a fuss.

"JJ, what happened?"

The excited sparkle in his eyes, brought on by the prospect of a real, child-free, date with his girlfriend, was instantaneously extinguished as he scanned her body for anything else which might accompany the bruise.

"I'm fine," she insisted, pre-empting what would likely be his next statement. "There was just a small incident when we tried to take the guy in."

A small incident? He looked at her with disbelief. Small incidents didn't cause black eyes, and... Wait - was that another bruise along her hairline?

"Are you okay?" he asked.

There was a hidden meaning to that question, which several occasions of returning home to one another, marked with the evidence of a difficult take-down, made clear. He really wanted to know if a medical professional had confirmed that she was okay. Her own subjective opinion wasn't relevant.

"Nothing's broken, I don't have a concussion and the swelling around my eye should go down in a few days," she answered.

He nodded, a relieved smile competing with his concerned frown, and reached out to tilt her face into the light. He might not have been a doctor, but he needed to assess the damage for himself. Cupping her chin with his hand, he stroked a thumb along her cheek until it came to the small cut beneath her eye. It must have taken some force to break the skin.

"I'm fine," she repeated, her voice quiet but defiant.

"Okay," he agreed, his fingers lingering lightly against her skin. "You're fine."

/  
/

Pizza or Chinese. That was what the options for their big date night now came down to. She was already skimming the familiar menus when he returned downstairs, having changed into something a little less overdressed for an evening of take-out on the sofa.

"I'm so sorry," she apologised, once again, as he took a seat beside her, reading over her shoulder. "I know you were looking forward to tonight."

"I still am," he assured her, kissing the top of her head. "Just 'cause you're too beat up for a restaurant, doesn't mean date night gets cancelled."

The grin, which was supposed to complete his attempt at flippancy, didn't quite manage to stretch beyond his lips. And, from the way he continued to look at the area around her eye, rather than directly meet her gaze, she suspected that was caused by his lingering concern rather than the unexpected alteration of their plans.

"What are you wantin' to eat?" he asked, his arm wrapping around her back and his hand coming to rest on her arm. He was being overly gentle, as though afraid to touch her and discover further injuries.

"Pizza, and maybe some garlic bread," she replied, leaning closer as if to prove he wasn't going to hurt her. "I think we might have some ice-cream in the freezer too."

He laughed as he both heard, and felt, her stomach rumble. Considering she'd travelled back from LA and dropped by Quantico, before coming home, it wasn't really a surprise she was so hungry.

"Unless you'd rather have something else?" she added.

He shook his head, leaning over her shoulder to press a kiss to her uninjured cheek for no apparent reason. After she returned from a case, it was a novelty just to have her close.

"I was gonna say the same thing," he told her, the corners of his lips quirking into a smile.

"I'll order," she volunteered, her eagerness causing him to chuckle once more.

"I've got it," he insisted, sliding out from behind her in search of a phone. "I know how to spoil my girl!"

With a smile, she let him take charge. It only made her love him more that he was trying to hide his disappointment. She knew he'd put a lot of thought into where he was going to take her, and in arranging a sleepover for Henry so that they had the night to themselves. And then once again, work had somehow got in the way.

As he placed the order, with the pizza place that didn't even have to confirm their address, Will's attention was suddenly drawn to the candles they'd stashed in a corner of the kitchen after a power cut. He grinned to himself as an idea crossed his mind. There was no rule that said take-out couldn't be romantic.

/  
/

"Are you being good for Michelle?" JJ asked, perching against the arm of a chair as she spoke to Henry on the phone. "Good," she responded to his affirmative answer.

While she listened to him hurriedly tell her about what he and his friend had been up to, out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Will on his hands and knees beside the coffee table. It soon became apparent that he was putting together an arrangement of candles.

"What?" he mouthed, shrugging, as she watched him with an amused smile before turning her attention back to their son.

"Wow!" she replied in an enthusiastic response to Henry's excited chatter. "So you're going to watch a movie?"

Will was now setting two wine glasses on the table, making a point of using the coasters which were so often forgotten when JJ was away. Her gaze darted back towards him as he made a show of lighting the candles, and she stifled a laugh.

"Okay. Now you keep being good and I'll see you in the morning. I love you," she told Henry, relaxing further as it was confirmed that her little boy was happy to be at his friend's house.

Her boyfriend had moved on from setting the table and was now flicking through his iPod in search of appropriate music. He played a quick blast of Nirvana, followed by something by the Wiggles, before finally settling on something marginally more appropriate to play in the background. She was now actively ignoring him.

"Will!" she exclaimed as soon as she'd said goodnight and ended the call. "I was trying to talk to our son!"

Her annoyance would have been more convincing if she hadn't been smiling widely.

"I'm sure he's heard his momma laugh before," Will replied nonchalantly, as she hurled a pillow in his direction.

/  
/

"Wine?" Will grinned, crouching down to where JJ was arranging the pizza boxes on their oddly decorated table. The grease-stained cardboard didn't quite go with the ambience of the candles and soft music.

"Of course," JJ responded with a laugh. Anything which would help her unwind, especially if it helped her ignore the aches developing across her body, was to be welcomed.

He poured two large glasses, before setting the bottle on the ground.

"What's that?" she asked, noticing that he'd brought a towel from the kitchen, as well as the wine.

"Ice," he replied, as though the answer was self-explanatory.

"Why?"

"'Cause your eye's gonna close up if it swells any more," he replied, with a soft smile. "Come here."

He adjusted the towel to ensure it was properly wrapped around the bag of ice, and leaned forward to press it gently to her face.

"Hold still," he instructed, chuckling slightly, as she flinched away. With his free hand he steadied her head, and tried again.

"Are you going to let me eat?" she asked, forcing herself to sound grumpier than she really was. If she was being truthful, the ice was already providing some much needed relief from the throbbing sensation which had already been grating on her nerves.

Will smirked mischievously, keeping the ice in place with one hand, as he grabbed a slice of pizza from the box and dangled it teasingly in front of her mouth. She leaned closer to take a bite, but he pulled it further away. Her sternest look only caused him to laugh more at his own joke. It wasn't quite so convincing when a substantial portion of her face was hidden behind a tea towel.

"Remember, I already kicked someone's ass today," she threatened, in response to his laughter.

With another chuckle, he relented and let her take control of both the pizza and the ice. He'd seen JJ train and he almost felt sorry for the UnSub who had taken her on in hand-to-hand combat. It wasn't worth the risk.

/

/

"You didn't tell me you hurt your ribs," he remarked.

"Who says I have?" she responded, trying to sound as though she was confused by the very idea.

They were lying lazily amongst the pillows and blankets Will had scattered across the floor, full from their meal and with their bodies happily intertwined. She struggled not to close her eyes as her head rested on his lap and he ran his fingers through her hair. The relaxed atmosphere, combined with the wine and the massive intake of carbohydrates, had left her drowsy.

"You're favourin' your left side," he explained. "And if I do this." He paused to gently trace his fingers from her hip to her chest, and watched her suck in a breath as his light touch passed over the tender area. "You do that."

"It's nothing," she insisted, her words having as much effect as if she'd simply opened her mouth and let a randomly selected sound escape.

"I could draw you a bath to help. Hot water. Lots of bubbles. More candles," he offered, tucking her hair behind her ear as he subtly examined one of her darkening bruises. "How does that sound?"

She didn't respond more than to give a non-committal nod. For the time being, she was content to remain as she was, comfortable and warm with his arm resting over the uninjured side of her body. The last time she'd felt so calm and happy was a distant memory and she was in no hurry to bring the sensation to an end.

Then, slowly, an idea crept into her head and a smile across her face. Without warning, she slipped out of his hold and scrambled to her feet.

He watched her as she did so. Her movements were less graceful than normal but she still didn't consider leaning on him for support. Even when she looked like she'd gone several rounds with Mohammad Ali, and her head was starting to swim under the effects of alcohol, her independence was fierce.

"You leavin' me on my own?" he teased, his smile quickly becoming a permanent fixture on his face.

She gave him a small shrug, biting her lip to stop herself laughing as she walked away.

He remained on the floor, now sitting upright as he waited for her to turn around. He forced his face into a straight expression as she glanced back.

"What are you waiting for?" she asked him, her voice low and seductive.

He shrugged, feigning innocence, despite the fact the sparkle in his eyes mirrored that in hers.

"I thought you wanted to take a bath?"


End file.
